Legal Question in Employment Law in California

California Labor Code section 512 prohibits employers from employing an employee for a work period of more than five (5) hours without providing a meal period of at last thirty (30) minutes, but the following exceptions to this rule exist:

(1) An employee who works no more than six (6) hours in a workday may voluntarily agree with her employer to waive her right to a meal period. This exception requires a mutual agreement; an employer cannot require an employee to waive the right to a meal period nor can an employee demand the right to waive a meal period if the employer is unwilling to agree.

(2) An employee who works more than six (6) hours in a workday may enter into a written agreement with his employer for an on-duty meal period that is counted as time worked (the employee is not relieved of all duty) IF, and ONLY IF all of the following conditions are met:

(i) the nature of the work prevents the employee from being relieved of all

duty;

(ii) the employee and employer agree IN WRITING to an on-the-job meal

period;

(iii) the written agreement states that the employee may revoke the agreement, in

writing, AT ANY TIME; and

(iv) the employee is paid for the meal period.

A good case could be made that a pizza delivery person, whose function is to deliver pizza as soon as possible, would be the type of work that could prevent an employee from being relieved of all duty.

Mr. Leichter is correct about the applicable law, but wrong in its application. The kind of work that prevents being relieved of all duties is things like being a medical care attendant, or the only nurse on duty at a small nursing home, or being the only security guard on duty in a closed building at night. Pizza delivery does not qualify.